The present invention relates to a self-standing game assembly for indoor and outdoor use and of the general type which includes a standard supporting a backboard below which there is a hoop-carried basket. More particularly, the present invention is directed to a game assembly useful in the playing of basketball and other games, and in which the backboard is imprinted with indicia defining the impact areas toward which the game ball may be directed. Important features of the game assembly of the invention are that the basket itself is responsive to excessive forces applied thereto to pivot or break-away from its horizontally standing mode, and to swing and assume a vertical disposition. The base of the standard upon which a backboard and the basket-carrying hoop of the invention are mounted is generally contoured to present an angled top surface which directs a ball back to the player of the game. This occurs when the ballwhich travels downwardly through the hoop and the basket, and then impinges upon the base.
Prior art "basketball games" and similar structures falling within the area of interest involving the present invention, are often of a cumbersome and heavy construction, and require significant assembly time. Others, which are fabricated of more fragile materials are often objectionably weak and unstable. It is a principal aim of the present invention to provide a light-weight, yet rigid and easily-erected game assembly which has broadened utility in its optional uses, which is exceedingly stable and reliable in construction and readily adjustable in height, and which includes other important features such as a safety-drop hoop and a ball-returning or bounce-back base.